- Wages
- Landscaping
- Tennessee
How much does a landscaper make in Tennessee?
In Tennessee, landscaping and groundskeeping workers earned an average of $18.56 an hour in May 2025, and the median was $17.80 an hour, per the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).
$18.56
$17.80
$20.33
$1.77 less an hour
$38,605
By the hour, the week and the year in Tennessee
At 40 hours a week, the average of $18.56 an hour comes to $742.40 a week. Over the 2,080-hour year the BLS uses for its annual figures, it comes to $38,605 a year, and the median of $17.80 to $37,024 a year.
In Tennessee, the average is $0.76 above the median (4.3%): a smaller group of higher wages pulls the average up, and half of landscaping and groundskeeping workers earn $17.80 an hour or less.
How does Tennessee compare?
The average in Tennessee is $1.77 below the national average of $20.33 (8.7% less), about $3,682 less a year at 2,080 hours.
By average wage, Tennessee ranks 40 of 51 states and DC with data for this trade (1 pays the most). The national median is $18.82 an hour.
Tennessee and its Census division, East South Central
Of the 4 states of the division with data for this trade, Tennessee pays the highest average, $18.56; next comes Kentucky with $18.34.
| State | Average per hour | Median per hour | Against Tennessee |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tennessee | $18.56 | $17.80 | |
| Kentucky | $18.34 | $17.63 | -$0.22 |
| Alabama | $17.36 | $17.13 | -$1.20 |
| Mississippi | $16.12 | $15.21 | -$2.44 |
This trade and the others in Tennessee
Of the 5 trades this site prices, landscaping and groundskeeping workers rank 4 of the 5 by average wage in Tennessee. Among them, the average runs from $15.24 (Cleaning) to $23.90 (Drywall).
| Trade | Average per hour | Median per hour | Against landscaping |
|---|---|---|---|
| Drywall | $23.90 | $22.84 | +$5.34 |
| Concrete | $23.41 | $23.04 | +$4.85 |
| Painting | $21.44 | $20.78 | +$2.88 |
| Landscaping | $18.56 | $17.80 | |
| Cleaning | $15.24 | $14.83 | -$3.32 |
Against the minimum wage in Tennessee
In Tennessee most employers pay the federal minimum wage, $7.25 an hour. The median of landscaping and groundskeeping workers, $17.80, is $10.55 above it, 2.5 times the minimum. Over 2,080 hours the minimum comes to $15,080 a year.
From wage to rate
This is what an employer pays an employee, not what a contractor bills. Your rate also has to cover your overhead (vehicle, insurance, tools), your profit, and the hours you cannot bill.
If you pay a helper the median wage in Tennessee, $17.80 an hour, the 8 hours of the starting job of the landscaping calculator cost $142.40 in wages. With its $55.00 of materials, 10% overhead and 15% profit, the quote comes to $249.71; at the national median, $18.82, the same job comes to $260.04. A wage is only the floor: your own rate also pays your taxes, your unbilled hours and your business.